Deliv joins same-day delivery space for alcohol

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Dive Brief:

Same-day delivery firm Deliv is adding alcohol to the roster of items it will pick up and deliver to consumers. The company announced it is partnering with alcohol retailers as well as Drync and BevSites — two companies that provide technology that beer, wine and spirit proprietors use for e-commerce.

Daphne Carmeli, Deliv’s CEO, told Food Dive alcohol is “a huge market” that is primed for growth online. Deliv is currently licensed to deliver alcohol across 10 of its 18 markets, including New York City, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. There are currently plans to expand into other markets.

“When it comes to alcohol, because of the weight, fragility and just fundamentally the other requirements, it’s just a very, very great prime market for us,” Carmeli said. “The technology is there to take alcohol sales online. Now the shipping, where we can provide a much more cost-effective solution and a much better customer experience.”

Dive Insight:

IBISWorld estimated revenue from online alcohol sales was approximately $600 million in 2016. The firm forecast it could grow to $772.3 million by 2021 as technology improves, a larger population enters the 20 to 64 age group and online purchase behaviors of millennials increase.

Carmeli said her five-year old company is different from most other delivery companies because it operates as an add-on to a retailer's existing online ordering and checkout systems. In this case, thousands of liquor stores can offer same day alcohol delivery through their own branded websites and mobile ordering platforms. Once the order is placed, Deliv picks up the already assembled order from the retailer — the company does not carry any inventory itself — and arranges a convenient drop-off time with the shopper.

“We’ve been in the alcohol business for nearly 80 years and have seen tremendous changes across the industry, but perhaps nothing so great as the emergence of e-commerce,” Ian Griffith, vice president of eCommerce of Beverage Media Group, said in a statement. “Integrating Deliv with the BevSites e-commerce platform makes it remarkably easy for our customers to add an outstanding same day delivery option that provides a differentiated customer experience.”

Deliv is able to use its technology to navigate complicated liquor laws and regulations that often differ by county and state. It also has expertise needed to transport a product that is fragile, comes with specific temperature requirements to maintain freshness and taste, and delivery specifications such as collecting an adult signature.

“Now same-day deliver becomes an out-of-the-box option for (alcohol retailers) that they can offer to their customers. Our business is always about plugging in and getting leverage,” Carmeli said. “We’re focusing very much on this alcohol market.”

If Deliv succeeds in bringing consumers their favorite wine, beer or spirit on the same day, the company could be in a position to capitalize on this growing segment within e-commerce. It helps that Deliv has already established a footprint in working with retailers to deliver everything from pet food and electronics to clothing and groceries. Last month, it announced a new grocery service called Deliv Fresh, through which it partners with specialty retailers, meal kit companies and other perishable food providers.

Other firms are entering the alcohol delivery business, too. Shipt is partnering with Kroger's Harris Teeter stores to allow beer and wine delivery to more than 1.5 million households in North Carolina — something analysts believe could be a big boon to business. Amazon recently announced it has added beer and wine delivery through its Prime Now service to the Cincinnati and Columbus, OH markets after finding success with a pilot program in Seattle.

Carmeli said her firm looks at Shipt and similar companies as partners, noting they are focused on customer acquisitions and conducting transactions while Deliv focuses solely on delivering the products.

“It’s a great, great market for us,” Carmeli said. "If you’re in the business today of selling any physical goods, you have to offer" same-day delivery.